Viktor Gyokeres can still match Premier League legend in his first season, don’t write him off yet

Arsenal fans only need to look as far as one of their rivals’ all-time greats to know there could be more to come from Viktor Gyokeres.

The Sweden international arrived at the Emirates last summer in a £55million deal from Sporting to plenty of fanfare.

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Given Gyokeres joined after a season in which he netted a staggering 54 goals from 52 games, Gunners fans were understandably excited at the prospect of him spearheading their attack.

But the 27-year-old has struggled to live up to his price tag thus far, scoring just five times from 19 league appearances.

In fact, Gyokeres has bagged just two Premier League goals since September 13.

Why Didier Drogba’s slow start at Chelsea can provide comfort for Gyokeres

However, European football expert Andy Brassell implored fans to look beyond Gyokeres’ shaky start to life in north London and drew a parallel between the Swede and Chelsea legend Didier Drogba, who also took his time to find his feet in the Premier League.

“If we look at the raw numbers and we look at previous big striker signings of the Premier League era, look at Didier Drogba at Chelsea,” Brassell told talkSPORT.com.

“I think that first season, Gyokeres is on course to post similar numbers. And they’re not signing Gyokeres just for one season. They’re signing him for the duration. They want him to produce for three or four seasons.

“Now, if we’re being honest, Drogba wasn’t Drogba as we remember him until season three at Chelsea. And he is now thought of, quite rightly, as one of the best strikers, one of the most influential strikers in Premier League history.

“So, for Gyokeres to build towards that, I think from memory he’s two years older than Drogba was when he arrived in the Premier League. So, we’re not talking about a huge gulf in terms of time or age or anything like that.

“Gyokeres has, like Drogba, not been at the top level for an enormous amount of time. Of course, he went from the second tier in England to being a title winner in Portugal in the space of a year.

“So, I don’t think he’s a write-off or anything like that yet.”

Didier Drogba’s Premier League goal record

Drogba had just two seasons as a starting striker in Ligue 1 under his belt when he joined Chelsea in July 2004 from Marseille and scored only 10 league goals in his debut campaign at Stamford Bridge.

The Ivorian followed it up with a 12-goal haul in the 2005/06 season before he exploded to life the following term, smashing home 20 goals to win the first of his two Premier League golden boots.

When Drogba departed in June 2012, he had scored a staggering 157 goals in 341 games across all competitions, cementing himself as an icon among the Stamford Bridge faithful.

Drogba’s on-field success also played a starring role in Chelsea winning 11 major trophies throughout his eight years in west London.

Although Gyokeres’ goalscoring woes are well-documented, the Swede has been fortunate it has not significantly impacted Arsenal’s title charge as they sit six points clear at the Premier League summit after 21 games.

Darren Bent reveals major Gyokeres ‘worry’ that could come back to bite

Despite his lofty price tag, Gyokeres may now be locked in a battle to retain his starting spot following the return of Kai Havertz.

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Havertz made his first appearance of the season when he came off the bench in Arsenal’s 4-1 FA Cup mauling of Portsmouth last Sunday.

Given he already possesses an intricate knowledge of how Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta wants to play and has an understanding of his teammates’ mannerisms on the pitch, Havertz may become a safer option to lead the line in the run home.

Speaking on Inside Gooners, former Premier League marksman Darren Bent pointed to those on-field relationships as something that could count against Gyokeres, at least in the short-term.

“I think it’s relationships,” Bent said.

“When you play centre forward, it’s called triggers. If [Bukayo] Saka cuts back on his left foot, he’s going to cross it back in. Or if [Leandro] Trossard on the other side cuts back, he’s going to put it in.

“But the fact at the minute, we’re going down the line and we’re chopping back, we’re not crossing it. We’re a little caught in-between.

Inside Gooners

“For himself (Gyokeres) personally, all he can keep doing is keep getting himself in there. It’s a worry when he’s not doing that because if you’re not going to do the link-up play, then you have to be in and around that six-yard box as that poacher.

“The fact he’s doing neither I think is going against him a little bit.”

Bent added: “I want it to work for him, I’m a big fan of his. But for whatever reason, it’s just not clicking.

“From Gyokeres’ perspective, limited efforts, low touches on goal, ball gets cut across the six-yard box and he’s nowhere to be seen.”